The invention relates generally to an inertial measuring system and more specifically concerns an inertial measuring system for measuring angular rate and linear accelerations that uses an annular momentum control device (AMCD) as the basic sensor.
There are numerous devices that will measure angular rates and linear accelerations. These devices are known as inertial measurement units in their basic form and as inertial navigation units in their more complex form. The disadvantages of these prior art devices are that they are complex, occupy a large volume, sometimes unreliable, have low momentum-to-mass ratios, have friction between moving parts which results in wear of the parts, and they require separate sensor elements for measuring angular rate and linear acceleration.
It is the primary object of this invention to provide an apparatus for measuring both angular rates and linear accelerations with a single multisensing device.
Another object of the invention is to provide a device for measuring angular rates and linear accelerations that is simple, reliable, has zero-friction, has zero-wear, has low volume, has high momentum-to-mass ratio and has zero breakout forces.
Other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent hereinafter in the specification and in the drawings.